Sam Altman to return as OpenAI CEO, says 'love this company'
Altman was ousted by the board of directors last Friday; around 65% of the company's 770-strong workforce threatened to resign if he was not reinstated.
ChatGPT creator OpenAI on Wednesday announced the return to company of ousted CEO Sam Altman, ending a crisis that began with his November 17 termination by the board of directors.
“We have reached an agreement in principle for Sam Altman to return to OpenAI as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor (Chair), Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo. We are collaborating to figure out the details. Thank you so much for your patience through this,” the San Francisco-based AI research firm wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Reacting to the development, Altman posted on X: “i love openai, and everything i’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together. when i decided to join msft (Microsoft) on sun evening, it was clear that was the best path for me and the team. with the new board and w satya’s support, i’m looking forward to returning to openai, and building on our strong partnership with msft.”
Greg Brockman, who resigned as OpenAI President to protest Altman's ouster, is also coming back.
Microsoft, the largest stakeholder in OpenAI, had hired Altman after his removal, and Brockman joined the 38-year-old at the Satya Nadella-helmed tech giant.
Altman's removal, meanwhile, saw more than 500 OpenAI employees, accounting for around 65% of its 770-strong workforce, threatening to resign and move to Microsoft if he was not brought back.
This prompted the ChatGPT creator to begin ‘intense discussions’ to find a solution.
